ROANOKE, Va. (March 10, 2023) – First-year Ryan Smith, junior Stefan Major, and seniors Kyle Slendorn and Hunter Gutierrez of the Stevens Institute of Technology wrestling team each cemented their All-America status Friday on the opening day of the 2023 NCAA Division III National Championships at the Berglund Center.

Gutierrez remains alive on the championship side of the bracket, while Smith, Major and Slendorn are in contention in the consolation bracket. As a team, the Ducks have amassed 34 points and sit in sixth place out of the 71 competing institutions. Augsburg has accumulated 62.5 points and sits atop the standings through the first day of action on the mats. Baldwin Wallace and Wartburg are tied for second with 40 points, with North Central (38) and Wisconsin-La Crosse (35.5) rounding out the top-five.

The All-America recognition is the first for both Gutierrez and Smith, while Slendorn and Major earned their fourth and second national accolade, respectively. 

Seeded fourth, Gutierrez scored two pins in two matches to reach the 149-pound semifinals. The Lacey Township, New Jersey native began his event with a first-period pin of Luther's Clayton McDonough. Gutierrez then pinned fifth-seeded All-American Kristian Rumph of Wartburg in the second period. He faces top-seeded Michael Petrella on Baldwin Wallace Saturday morning. 

Slendorn secured his fourth All-America accolade after pinning Baldwin Wallace's Zachery Anderson in the second period. The Ramtown, New Jersey native did not concede a point to his opponent prior to the fall. Slendorn dropped into the consolation bracket after a 9-6 setback to TCNJ's Dominic Difrancescantonio, but quickly rebounded with a third-period pin of Centenary's sixth-seeded Xavier Pena. Slendorn draws eighth-seeded James Rodriguez of Castleton to begin his final day of competition. 

In his first national tournament, Smith dropped his first match of the day, but rallied to win three straight matches to secure his first career All-America honor. Smith began his march through the consolation bracket with a 6-2 decision over TCNJ's Matthew Sacco, before defeating John Carroll's seventh-seeded Patrick McGraw 8-6. He closed the day with a 7-3 victory over eighth-seeded Thomas West of Baldwin Wallace. Smith draws his third consecutive seeded wrestler Saturday, when the Brick, New Jersey native faces fifth-seeded Ryan Luth of Washington & Lee.

Seeded fifth at 174, Major opened his tournament with a 6-2 decision over Baldwin Wallace's Luke Hopkins. After falling to the weight class's fourth seed, Jared Stricker of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, the Fort Salonga native quickly rebounded with a first-period pin of Averett's Alex Turley, Major will face Muhlenberg's Anson Dewar in his first bout Saturday. Major needs two wins to reach the third-place match, which would surpass his performance from the 2022 championships (seventh).

All totaled, the Ducks sent seven wrestlers to the national tournament, matching the most in program history. Junior Luke Hoerle and first-year Nico Diaz each went 1-2 on the day before bowing out of the tournament. Hoerle's scored an impressive 14-3 major decision over Cortland's Cody Morris in his first consolation bout, while Diaz had a 4-3 decision victory over Trinity (CT)'s Adam Schaeublin in his first bout of the day. 

Graduate student Michael Dooley dropped a pair of matches at heavyweight to conclude his sterling career on Castle Point. The Hillsborough, New Jersey native has won more than 90 matches during his time on Castle Point and is a multi-time national qualifier. 

As a team, Stevens is tied with North Central and Augsburg for the tournament lead with five pins. 

Up Next: Competition begins at 10 a.m. with the championship matches kicking off at 7 p.m. Links for live stats and video are posted to StevensDucks.com.

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